Hitler
Psychological Analysis & Reconstruction
Part III
From a consideration of all the evidence it would seem that Hitler's perversion is as
Geli has described it. The great danger in gratifying it, however, is that the individual
might get faeces or urine into his mouth. It is this danger that must be guarded against.
Return to the womb.
Another possibility in infantile thinking presents itself in this connection. When the
home environment is harsh and brutal, as it was in Hitler's case, the small child very
frequently envies the position of passivity and security the unborn child enjoys within
the mother. This, in turn, gives rise to fantasies of finding a way in to the longed for
claustrum and ousting his rival in order that he may take his place. These fantasies are
usually of very brief duration because, as the child believes, he would have nothing to
eat or drink except faeces and urine. The thoughht of such a diet arouses feelings of
disgust and consequently he abandons his fantasies in order to avoid these unpleasant
feelings. In many psychotics, however, these fantasies continue and strive to express
themselves overtly. The outstanding bit of evidence in Hitler's case that such fantasies
were present is to be found in the Kehlstein or Eagle's Nest which he has built for
himself near Berchtesgaden. Interestingly enough, many people have, commented that only a
madman would conceive of such a place, let alone try to build it.
From a symbolic point of view one can easily imagine that this is a materialization of
a child's conception of the return to the womb. First there is a long hard road, then a
heavily guarded entrance, a trip through a long tunnel to an extremely inaccessible place.
Then one can be alone, safe and undisturbed, and revel in the joys that Mother Nature
bestows. It is also interesting to note that very few people have ever been invited there
and many of Hitier's closest associates are either unaware of its existence or have only
seen it from a distance. Extraordinarily enough, Francois-Poncet is one of the few people
who was ever invited to visit there. In the French Yellow Book, he gives us an extremely
vivid description of the place, a part of which may be worthwhile quoting:
"The approach is by a winding road about nine miles long, boldly cut out of the
rock...the road comes to an end in front of a long underground passage leading into the
mountain, enclosed by a heavy double door of bronze. At the far end of the underground
passage a wide lift, panelled with sheets of copper, awaits the visitor. Through a
vertical shaft of 330 feet cut right through the rock, it rises up to the level of the
Chancellor's dwelling place. Here is reached the astonishing climax. The visitor finds
himself in a strong and massive building containing a gallery with Roman pillars, an
immense circular hall with windows all around,... It gives the impression of being
suspended in space, an almost overhanging wall of bare rock rises up abruptly. The whole,
bathed in the twilight of the autumn evening, is grandiose, wild, almost hallucinating.
The visitor wonders whether he is awake or dreaming." (943)
If one were asked to plan something which represented a return to the womb, one could
not possibly surpass the Kehlstein. It is also significant that Hitler often retires to
this strange place to await instructions concerning the course he is to pursue.
Vegetarianism.
We can surmise from the psychological defenses Hitler has set up, that there was a
period during which he struggled against these tendencies. In terms of unconscious
symbolism meat is almost synonomous with faeces and beer with urine. The fact that there
is a strict taboo on both would indicate that these desires are still present and that it
is only by refraining from everything symbolizing them that he can avoid arousing
anxieties. Rauschning reports that Hitler, following Wagner, attributed much of the decay
of cur civilization to meat eating. That the decadence "had its origin in the abdomen
-- chronic constipation, poisoning of the juices, and the results of drinking to
excess." This assertion suggests decay (contamination, corruption, pollution, and
death) as the resultant of constipation, that is, feaces in the gastro-intestinal tract,
and if this is so, decay might be avoided both by not eating anything resembling feaces
and by taking purges or ejecting as frequently as possible. It has been reported that
Hitler once said that he was confident that all nations would arrive at the point where
they would not feed any more on dead animals. It is interesting to note that according to
one of our most reliable informants Hitler only became a real vegetarian after the death
of his niece, Geli. In clinical practice, one almost invariably finds compulsive
vegetarianism setting in after the death of a loved object.
We may, therefore, regard Hitler's perversion as a compromise between psychotic
tendencies to eat faeces and drink urine on the one hand, and to live a normal socially
adjusted life on the other. The compromise is not, however, satisfactory to either side of
his nature and the struggle between these two diverse tendencies continues to rage
unconsciously. We must not suppose that Hitler gratifies his strange perversion
frequently. Patients of this type rarely do and in Hitler's case it is highly probable
that he has permitted himself to go this far only with his niece, Geli. The practice of
this perversion represents the lowest depths of degradation.
Masochistic gratifications.
In most patients suffering from this perversion the unconscious forces only get out of
control to this degree when a fairly strong love relationship is established and sexuality
makes decisive demands. In other cases where the love component is less strong the
individual contents himself with less degrading activities. This is brought out cleariy in
the case of Rene Mueller who confided to her director, Zeissler (921), who had asked her
what was troubling her after spending an evening at the Chancelllory, "that the
evening before she had been with Hitler and that she had been sure that he was going
to have intercourse with her; that they had both undressed and were apparently getting
ready for bed when Hitler fell on the floor and begged her to kick him. She demurred but
he pleaded with her and condemned himself as unworthy, heaped all kinds of accusations on
his own head and just grovelled around in an agonizing manner. The scene became
intolerable to her and she finally acceded to his wishes and kicked him. This excited him
greatly and he begged for more and more, always saying that it was even better than he
deserved and that he was not worthy to be in the same room with her. As she continued to
kick him he became more and more excited...." Rene Mueller committed suicide shortly
after this experience. At this place it night be well to note that Eva Braun, his present
female companion, has twice attempted suicide, Geli was either murdered or committed
suicide and Unity Mitford has attempted suicide. Rather an unusual record for a man who
has had so few affairs with women.
Hanfstaengl, Strasser, and Rauschning, as well as several other informants, have
reported that even in company when Hitler is smitted with a girl, he tends to grovel at
her feet in a most disgusting manner. Here, too, he insists on telling the girl that he is
unworthy to kiss her hand or to sit near her and that he hopes she will be kind to him,
etc. From all this we see the constant struggle against complete degradation whenever any
affectionate components enter into the picture. It now becomes clear that the only way in
which Hitler can control these copraphagic tendencies or their milder manifestations is to
isolate himself from any intimate relationships in which warm feelings of affection or
love might assert themselves. As soon as such feelings are aroused, he feels compelled to
degrade himself in the eyes of the loved object and eat their dirt figuratively, if not
literally. These tendencies disgust him just as much as they disgust us, but under these
circumstances they get out of control and he despises himself and condemns himself for his
weakness. Before considering futher the effects of this struggle on his manifest behavior,
we must pause for a moment to pick up another thread.
Femininity.
We notice that in all of these activities Hitler plays the passive role. His behavior
is masochistic in the extreme inasmuch as he derives sexual pleasure from punishment
inflicted on his own body. There is every reason to suppose that during his early years,
instead of identifying himself with his father as most boys do, he identified himself with
his mother. This was perhaps easier for him than for most boys since, as we have seen,
there is a large feminine component in his physical makeup. His mother, too, must have
been an extremely masochistic individual or she never would have entered into this
marriage nor would she have endured the brutal treatment from her husband. An
emotional identification with his mother would, therefore, carry him in the direction of a
passive, sentimental, abasive and submissive form of adjustment. Many writers and
informants have commented on his feminine characteristics - his gait, his hands, his
mannerisms and ways of thinking. Hanfstaengl reports that when he showed Dr. Jung a
specimen of Hitler's handwriting, the latter immediately exclaimed that it was a typically
feminine hand. His choice of art as a profession might also be interpreted as a
manifestation of a basic feminine identification.
There are definite indications of such an emotional adjustment later in life. The
outstanding of these is perhaps his behavior towards his officers during the last war. His
comrades report that during the four years he was in service he was not only
over-submissive to all his officers but frequently volunteered to do their washing and
take care of their clothes. This would certainly indicate a strong tendency to assume the
feminine role in the presence of a masculine figure whenever this was feasible and could
be duly rationalized. His extreme sentimentality, his emotionality, his occasional
softness and his weeping, even after he became Chancellor, may be regarded as
manifestations of a fundamental feminine pattern which undoubtedly had its origins in his
relationship to his mother. His persistent fear of cancer, which was the illness from
which his mother died, may also be considered as an expression of his early identification
with her.
Although we cannot enter into a discussion concerning the frequency of this phenomenon
in Germany, it may be well to note that there is sociological evidence which would
indicate that it is probably extremely common. If further research on the subject should
corroborate this evidence, it might prove of extreme value to our psychological warfare
program insofar as it would give us a key to the understanding of the basic nature of the
German male character, and the role that the Nazi organization plays in their inner life.
Homosexuality.
The great difficulty is that this form of identification early in life carries the
individual in the direction of passive homosexuality. Hitler has for years been suspected
of being a homosexual, although there is no reliable evidence that he has actually engaged
in a relationship of this kind. Rauschning reports that he has met two boys who claimed
that they were Hitler's homosexual partners, but their testimony can scarcely be taken at
its face value. More condemning would be the remarks dropped by Foerster, the Danzig
Gauleiter, in conversations with Rauschning. Even here, however, the remarks deal only
with Hitler's impotence as far as heterosexual relations go without actually implying that
he indulges in homosexuality. It is probably true that Hitler calls Foerster
"Bubi", which is a common nickname employed by homosexuals in addressing their
partners. This alone, however, is not adequate proof that he has actually indulged in
homosexual practices with Foerster, who is known to be a homosexual.
The belief that Hitler is homosexual has probably developed (a) from the fact that he
does show so many feminine characteristics, and (b) from the fact that there were so many
homosexuals in the Party during the early days and many continue to occupy important
positions. It does seem that Hitler feels much more at ease with homosexuals than with
normal persons, but this may be due to the fact that they are all fundamentally social
outcasts and consequently have a community of interests which tends to make them think and
feel more or less alike. In this connection it is interesting to note that homosexuals,
too, frequently regard themselves as a special form of creation or as chosen ones whose
destiny it is to initiate a new order.
The fact that underneath they feel themselves to be different and ostracized from
normal social contacts usually makes them easy converts to a new social philosophy which
does not discriminate against them. Being among civilization's discontents, they are
always willing to take a chance of something new which holds any promise of improving
their lot, even though their chances of success may be small and the risk great. Having
little to lose to begin with, they can afford to take chances which others would refrain
from taking. The early Nazi party certainly contained many members who could be regarded
in this light. Even today Hitler derives pleasure from looking at men's bodies and
associating with homosexuals. Strasser tells us that his personal body guard is almost
always 100% homosexuals.
He also derives considerable pleasure from being with his Hitler Youth and his attitude
towards them frequently tends to be more that of a woman than that of a man.
There is a possibility that Hitler has participated in a homosexual relationship at
some time in his life. The evidence is such that we can only say there is a strong
tendency in this direction which, in addition to the manifestations already enumerated,
often finds expression in imagery concerning being attacked from behind or being stabbed
in the back. His nightmares, which frequently deal with being attacked by a man and being
suffocated, also suggest strong homosexual tendencies and a fear of them. From these
indications, however, we would conclude that for the most part these tendencies have been
repressed, which would speak against the probability of their being expressed in overt
form. On the other hand, persons suffering from his perversion sometimes do indulge in
homosexual practices in the hope that they might find sexual gratification. Even this
perversion would be more acceptable to them than the one with which they are afflicted.
Early school years.
The foundations of all the diverse patterns we have been considering were laid during
the first years of Hitler's life. Many of them, as we have seen, were due primarily to the
peculiar structure of the home, while others developed from constitutional factors or
false interpretations of events.
Whatever their origins may have been, they did set up anti-social tendencies and
tensions which disturbed the child to a high degree. From his earliest days it would seem
he must have felt that the world was a pretty had place in which to live. To him it must
have seemed as though the world was filled with insurmountable hazards and obstacles which
prevented him from obtaining adequate gratifications, and dangers which would menace his
well-being if he attempted to obtain them in a direct manner. The result was that an
unusual amount of bitterness against the world and the people in it became generated for
which he could find no suitable outlets. As a young child he must have been filled with
feelings of inadequacy, anxiety and guilt which made him anything but a happy child.
It would seem, however, that he managed to repress most of his troublesome tendencies
and make a temporary adjustment to a difficult environment before he was six years old,
because at that time he entered school and for the next years he was an unusually good
student. All of the report cards that have been found from the time he entered school
until he was eleven years old, show an almost unbroken line of "A's" in all his
school subjects. At the age of eleven the bottom dropped right out of his academic career.
From an "A" student he suddenly dropped to a point where he failed in almost all
his subjects and had to repeat the year. This amazing about-face only becomes intelligible
when we realize that his baby brother died at that time. We can only surmise that this
event served to reawaken his earlier conflicts and disrupt his psychological equilibrium.
In Hitler's case we may suppose that this event affected him in at least two important
ways. First, it must have reawakened fears of his own death which, in turn, strengthened
still further the conviction that he was the "chosen one" and under divine
protection. Second, it would seem that he connected the death of his brother with his own
thinking and wishing on the subject. Unquestionably, he hated this intruder and frequently
thought of how nice it would be if he were removed from the scene. Unconsciously, if not
consciously, he must have felt that the brother's death was the result of his own thinking
on the subject. This accentuated his feelings of guilt on the one hand, while it
strengthened still further his belief in special powers of Divine origin on the other. To
think about these things was almost synonomous with having them come true. In order to
avoid further guilt feelings he had to put a curb on his thinking processes. The result of
this inhibition on thinking was that Hitler the good student was transformed into Hitler
the poor student. Not only did he have to repeat the school year during which the brother
died, but ever after his academic performance was mediocre, to say the least. When we
examine his later report cards we find that he does well only in such subjects as drawing
and gymnastics, which require no thinking. In all the other subjects such as mathematics,
languages or history, which require some thinking, his work is on the borderline -
sometimes satisfactory and sometimes unsatisfactory.
We can easily imagine that it was during this period that the father's ire was aroused
and he began to bring pressure on the boy to apply himself in his school work and
threatened dire consequences if he failed to do so. From sociological evidence it would
seem that this is about the age at which most German fathers first take a real interest in
their sons and their education. If Hitler's father followed this general pattern, we can
assume that he had cause to be irate at his son's performance. The constant struggle
between himself and his father, which he describes in MEIN KAMPF, is probably true
although the motivations underlying his actions were in all likelihood quite different
from those he describes. He was approaching the adolescent period and this, together with
his little brother's death, served to bring many dormant attitudes nearer the surface of
consciousness.
Many of these attitudes now found expression in the father-son relationship. Briefly
enumerated these would be (a) rejection of the father as a model; (b) an inhibition
against following a career which demanded thinking; (c) the anal tendencies which found an
outlet of expression in smearing; (d) his passive, feminine tendencies, and (e) his
masochistic tendencies and his desire to be dominated by a strong masculine figure. He was
not, however, ready for an open revolt for he tells us in his autobiography that he
believed passive resistance and obstinacy were the best course and that if he followed
them long enough, his father would eventually relent and allow him to leave school and
follow an artist's career. As a matter of fact, his brother Alois, in 193O, before the
Hitler myth was well established, reported, that his father never had any objection to
Adolph's becoming an artist but that he did demand that Adolph do well in school. From
this we might surmise that the friction between father and son was not determined so much
by his choice of a career as by unconscious tendencies which were deriving satisfaction
from the antagonism.
Later school career.
He carried the same pattern into the schools where he was forever antagonizing his
teachers and the other boys. He has tried to create the impression that he was a leader
among his classmates, which is most certainly false. More reliable evidence indicates that
he was unpopular among his classmates as well as among his teachers who considered him
lazy, uncooperative and a trouble-maker. The only teacher during these years with whom he
was able to get along was Ludwig Poetsch, an ardent German Nationalist. It would he an
error, however, to suppose that Poetsch inculcated these nationalist feelings in Hitler.
It is much more logical to assume that all these feelings were present in Hitler before he
came in contact with Poetsch and that his nationalist teachings only offered Hitler
a new outlet for the expression of his repressed emotions. It was probably during this
period that he discovered a resemblance between the young state of Germany and his mother,
and between the old Austrian monarchy and his father. At this discovery he promptly joined
the Nationalist group of students who were defying the authority of the Austrian state. In
this way he was able to proclaim openly his love for his mother and advocate the death of
his father. These were feelings he had had for a long time but was unable to express. Now
he was able to obtain partial gratification through the use of symbols.
The death of his father.
This probably served to increase the friction between father and son, for in spite of
what Hitler says the best evidence seems to indicate that the father was anti-German in
his sentiments. This again placed father and son on opposite sides of the fence and gave
them new cause for hostility. There is no telling how this would have worked out in the
long run because while the struggle between the two was at its height, the father fell
dead on the street. The repercussions of this event must have been severe and reinforced
all those feelings which we have described in connection with the brother's death. Again,
it must have seemed like a fulfillment of a wish and again there must have been severe
feelings of guilt, with an additional inhibition on thinking processes.
His school work continued to decline and it seems that in order to avoid another
complete failure, he was taken from the school at Linz and sent to school in Steyr. He
managed to complete the year, however, with marks which were barely satisfactory. It was
while he was there that the doctor told him that he had a disease from which he would
never recover. His reaction to this was severe since it brought the possibility of his own
death very much into the foreground and aggravated all his childhood fears. The result was
that he did not return to school and finish his course, but stayed at home where he lived
a life which was marked by passivity. He neither studied nor worked but spent most of his
time in bed where he was again spoiled by his mother who catered to his every need despite
her poor financial circumstances.
One could suppose that this was the materialization of his conception of Paradise
inasmuch as it reinstated an earlier childhood situation which he had always longed for.
It would seem from his own account, however, that things did not go too smoothly, for he
writes in MEIN KAMPF:
"When at the age of fourteen, the young man is dismissed from school, it is
difficult to say which is worse; his unbelievable ignorance as far as knowledge and
ability are concerned, or the biting impudence of his behavior combined with an immorality
which makes one's hair stand on end...The three year old child has now become a youth of
fifteen who despises all authority... now he loiters about, and God knows when he comes
home."
We can imagine the deaths of his brother and his father in rapid succession had filled
him with such guilt that he could not enjoy this idyllic situation to the full. Perhaps
the situation aroused desires in him which he could no longer face on a conscious level
and he could only keep these in check by either remaining in bed and playing the part of a
helpless child or absenting himself from the situation entirely. In any case, he must have
been a considerable problem to his mother who died four years after his father. Dr. Bloch
informs us that her great concern in dying was: "What would become of poor Adolph, he
is still so young." At this time Adolph was eighteen years of age. He had failed at
school and had not gone to work. He describes himself at this time as a milk-sop, which he
undoubtedly was.
Admission examinations to Academy of Art.
Two months before his mother's death he had gone to Vienna to take the entrance
examinations for admission to the Academy of Art. At this time he knew that his mother was
in a critical condition and that it was only a matter of a few months before death would
overtake her. He knew, therefore, that this easy existence at home would shortly come to
an end and that he would then have to face the cold, hard world on his own. It is
sometimes extraordinary how events in the lifetime of an individual fall together. The
first day's assignment on the examination was to draw a picture depicting "The
Expulsion from Paradise". It must have seemed to him that Fate had chosen this topic
to fit his personal situation. On the second day he must have felt that Fate was rubbing
it in when he found the assignment to be a picture depicting "An Episode of the Great
Flood". These particular topics in his situation met have aroused such intense
emotional reactions within him that he could hardly be expected to do his best. Art
critics seem to feel that he has some artistic talent even though it is not outstanding.
The comment of the examiners was: "Too few heads." We can understand this in
view of the circumstances under which he had taken the examination.
Death of his mother.
He returned home shortly after the examinations. He helped to look after his mother who
was rapidly failing and in extreme pain. She died on December 21, 1907 and was buried on
Christmas Eve. Adolph was completely broken and stood for a long time at her grave after
the remainder of the family had left. Dr. Bloch says: "In all my career I have never
seen anyone so prostrate with grief as Adolph Hitler." His world had come to an end.
Not long after the funeral he left for Vienna in order to follow in his father's footsteps
and make his own way in the world. He made a poor job of it, however. He could not hold a
job when he had one, and sunk lower and lower in the social scale until he was compelled
to live with the dregs of society.
Vienna days.
As he writes about these experiences in MEIN KAMPF one gets the impression that it was
a terrific struggle against overwhelming odds. From what we now know of Adolph Hitler it
would seem more likely that this existance yielded him considerable gratification in spite
of its hardships. It is perfectly clear from what Hanisch writes that with a very small
amount of effort he could have made a fair living and improved his condition by painting
water-colors. He refused to make this effort and preferred to live in the filth and
poverty which surrounded him. There must have been something in this that he liked,
consciously or unconsciously.
When we examine Hanisch's book carefully, we find the answer. Hitler's life in Vienna
was one of extreme passivity in which activity was held at the lowest level consistent
with survival. He seemed to enjoy being dirty and even filthy in his appearance and
personal cleanliness. This can mean only one thing, from a psychological point of view,
namely that his perversion was in the process of maturation and was finding gratification
in a more or less symbolic form. His attitude during this period could be summed up in the
following terms: "I enjoy nothing more than to lie around while the world defacates
on me." And he probably delighted in being covered with dirt, which was tangible
proof of the fact. Even in these days he lived in a flophouse which was known to be
inhabited by men who lent themselves to homosexual practices, and it was probably for this
reason that he was listed on the Vienna police record as a "sexual pervert."
Nobody has ever offered an explanation of why he remained in Vienna for over five years
if his life there was as distasteful and the city disgusted him to the degree that he
claims in his autobiography. He was free to leave whenever he wished and could have gone
to his beloved Germany years earlier if he had so desired. The fact of the matter is that
he probably derived great masochistic satisfaction from his miserable life in Vienna, and
it was not until his perversion became full-blown and he realized its implications that he
fled to Munich at the beginning of 1913.
Anti-Semitism.
With the development of his perverse tendencies we also find the development of his
anti-Semitism. There is absolutely no evidence that he had any anti-Semitic feeling before
he left Linz or that he had any during the first years of his stay in Vienna. On the
contrary, he was on the very best terms with Dr. Bloch while he was in Linz and sent him
postcards with very warm sentiments for slome time after he went to Vienna. Furthermore,
his closest friends in Vienna were Jews, some of whom were extremely kind to him. Then,
too, we must remember that his godfather, who lived in Vienna, was a Jew and it is
possible that during his first year there he might have lived with this family. Most of
the records of his mother's death are incorrect and place the event exactly one year after
it had happened. During this year Hitler lived in Vienna but we have no clue as to what he
did or how he managed to live without money during this intervening year.
All we know is that he had time for painting during this period for he submitted the
work he had done to the Academy of Art the following October. He was not admitted to the
examination, however, because the examiners found the work of this period unsatisfactory.
Shortly afterwards, he applied for admission to the School of Architecture but was
rejected. The cause of his rejection was probably inadequate talent rather than the fact
that he had not completed his course in the Realschule. It is only after this happened
that we find him going to work as a laborer on a construction job, and from then on we
have a fairly complete picture of his activities.
We know that he had very little money when he left Linz, certainly not enough to live
on for almost an entire year while he spent his time in painting. Since the date of his
mother's death has been so universally distorted, it would seem that efforts were being
made to cover something which happened during this intervening year. My guess would be
that he lived with his Jewish godparents who supported him while he was preparing work for
the Academy. When he failed to be admitted at the end of a year, they put him out and made
him go to work. There is one bit of evidence for this hypothesis. Hanisch, in his book,
mentions in passing that when they were particularly destitute he went with Hitler to
visit a well-to-do Jew whom Hitler said was his father. The wealthy Jew would have nothing
to do with him and sent him on his way again. There is scarcely a possibility that
Hitler's father was a Jew, but Hanisch might easily have understood him to say father when
he said godfather. This would certainly make much more sense and would indicate that
Hitler had contact with his godparents before the visit and that they were fed up with him
and would help him no further.
Projection.
Hitler's outstanding defense mechanism is one commonly called PROJECTION. It is a
technique by which the ego of an individual defends itself against unpleasant impulses,
tendencies or characteristics by denying their existence in himself while he attributes
them to others. Innumerable examples of this mechanism could be cited in Hitler's case,
but a few will suffice for purposes of illustration:
"In the last six years I had to stand intolerable things from states like
Poland."
"It must be possible that the German nation can live its life...without being
constantly molested."
"Social democracy...directs a bombardment of lies and calumnies towards the
adversary who seemed most dangerous, till finally the nerves of those who have been
attacked give out and they for the sake of peace, bow down to the hated enemy."
"For this peace proposal of mine I was abused, and personally insulted. Mr.
Chamberlain in fact spat upon me before the eyes of the world..."
"...It was in keeping with our own harmlessness that England took the liberty of
some day meeting our peaceful activity with the brutality of the violent egoist."
"...The outstanding features of Polish character were cruelty and lack of moral
restraint."
From a psychological point of view it is not too far-fetched to suppose that as the
perversion developed and became more disgusting to Hitler's ego, its demands were disowned
and projected upon the Jew. By this process the Jew became a symbol of everything which
HitIer hated in himself. Again, his own personal problems and conflicts were transferred
from within himself to the external world where they assumed the proportions of racial and
national conflicts.
Forgetting entirely that for years he not only looked like a lower class Jew but was as
dirty as the dirtiest and as great a social outcast, he now began to see the Jew as a
source of all evil. The teachings of Schoenerer and Lueger helped to solidify and
rationalize his feelings and inner convictions. More and more he became convinced that the
Jew was a great parasite on humanity which sucked its life-blood and if a nation was
to become great it must rid itself of this pestilence. Translated back into personal terms
this would read: "My perversion is a parasite which sucks my life-blood and if I am
to become great I must rid myself of this pestilence." When we see the connection
between his sexual perversion and anti-Semitism, we can understand another aspect of his
constant linking of syphilis with the Jew. These are the things which destroy nations and
civilizations as a perversion destroys an individual.
Psychological Analysis Part IV
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